1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a container having a dual use as a receptacle for debris that can be converted into a sawhorse. Additionally, the present invention teaches a lid for transforming a common household container into a sawhorse. Specifically, the invention relates to a container, or a lid for a container, having a modified rim on a top surface, or a modified bottom surface, with recesses or protrusions for holding a board in a tight, friction-fit insertion in a position that allows the user to set up the container and use it as a sawhorse.
2. Description of Related Art
Carpenters and other types of construction workers often use work platforms which are commonly referred to as sawhorses. Sawhorses are typically rigidly constructed from wood and present a wooden work platform upon which boards and the like are placed for cutting and/or fabrication. Often sawhorses are constructed on the job site because of their awkward shape and the attendant difficulty with which they are transported. Although the original use for a sawhorse was to provide a rack to support something being sawed, today's professional construction workers, farmers, and home hobbyists use sawhorse type devices to create a work surface, a raised storage surface, a barricade, scaffolding, and other similar support structures as well as to support items to be sawed.
Generally, a sawhorse is a beam with four legs. FIG. 1 depicts the typical sawhorse 10 of the prior art. Four separate, splayed legs 12 extend from beam 14, and are strengthened by support brackets 16. Sawhorses are generally used to support a board or plank for sawing. A pair of sawhorses is typically useful to support a plank or a door, or for forming a scaffold. A sawhorse with a wide top is particularly useful to support a board for sawing or for use as a field workbench. It is desirable to have a sawhorse that can accommodate a wide work surface as a field workbench or a narrow work surface for supporting heavier weights, depending upon the specific use.
The capability of handling heavy loads is important with sawhorses, especially in commercial construction. Stability and durability are features of a commercial sawhorse as well. The sawhorse needs to be designed such that it disperses the stress forces and the weight of its load across as broad an area as possible, to provide maximum support with minimum stress, or have reinforced support structures at the weight-bearing points that can withstand the weight. One such example of this in the prior art is the fitting of the wooden legs flush against an attachment bracket to spread the load stress points over an extended area.
In many instances, sawhorses are fabricated at the worksite from extra, or unused material, usually woodcuttings. It is not uncommon for home hobbyists to use makeshift materials as footings for a board or plank in the fabrication of a homemade sawhorse. These designs generally do not have the structural or mechanical integrity of prefabricated, braced sawhorses. They are generally heavy, cumbersome, and unstable. It is desirable to have a sawhorse that is constructed of a strong, resilient, yet light material that sufficiently provides the necessary structural integrity usually expected for the construction jobs requiring sawhorses.
Additionally, during the workday, as the sawhorse is used in its common fashion, the area surrounding the sawhorse eventually becomes littered with discarded material, such as end-pieces of unused wood, and other worksite debris. It is desirable to have a sawhorse a worker can use that facilitates a cleaner work environment during usage.
Home use is always a challenge for work tools. Most people do not have all the equipment, space, or resources available when they undertake a home project. With this in mind, it is extremely desirable to have a sawhorse that can provide for more than one function for the home site, thus minimizing the amount of space required for storing, while allowing the home hobbyist to get more than one type of use from the same apparatus.
It is not uncommon for home hobbyists to situate a board or plank between garbage cans to make a sawhorse. This is structurally unstable, and in many respects, unsafe. Yet, garbage containers are ubiquitous in almost every home. It is desirable to give home hobbyists the opportunity to safely convert a container, such as a garbage can, into a sawhorse when the need arises.
Everyone is interested in low cost; and, therefore, it is also desirable to make the sawhorse of inexpensive material that is strong, light, and easy to manufacture, such as extruded or molded plastic, formed metal alloy, and the like. Construction sights are not known for gentleness and any tool or device that is intended for use on-site must be able to withstand rough treatment.
Designs in the prior art lack a dual use structure or container that can perform its container function as well as having the capability to be used as a structurally sound sawhorse. In U.S. Pat. No. 1,101,610 issued to H. W. Allard on Jun. 30, 1914, entitled “RAILING SUPPORT,” a support for planks and the like is taught. A lantern-receiving support is disclosed with stirrups at the upper ends of a collapsible frame. Each support frame comprises a pair of similar frame members, pivoted together at their upper ends. The frame is formed by suitably bending a single piece of metal. The upper portion of the frame is bent to configure the stirrup. Two frame members are adapted to be swung apart and locked in an open position by hook members hinged to one of the frame members. When the frame members are separated, the lower ends of the stirrups are separated as well, so that the stirrups can engage the abutting ends of a pair of boards. This prior art does not teach or disclose a dual use sawhorse/container design.
Containers are used in the prior art for holding various tools, but none are constructed for use as a dual-purpose sawhorse. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,065 issued to Darrey on Sep. 27, 1994, entitled “TOOL AND HARDWARE CARRIER FOR BUCKET,” a bucket for carrying hand tools is disclosed, including a bucket with a planar, circular top, and a cylindrical cavity located at the axial center of the bucket. The top has holes and slots to receive tools. The top also includes two swivel-locking devices opposite one another. The inner cylindrical space may be used to put loose articles in such as nuts, bolts, screws, nails, or other small irregularly shaped objects. This design teaches a container for holding small tools, but does not teach or suggest use as a sawhorse.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,351,730 issued to Lewellen, et al., on Oct. 4, 1994, entitled “MULTIPURPOSE PORTABLE WORKBENCH,” a carpenter's workbench is disclosed. The workbench has a T-shaped profile and a V-shaped groove at its top surface. The workbench has a generally rectangular body with four legs, uniformly formed of plastic material. The T-shaped channel is open ended and intended for use in receiving a length of lumber so that ends thereof, which overhang the workbench body may be cut. Similarly, the V-groove is designed to hold a pipe for cutting. The Lewellen design does not provide a dual-purpose, container-type base structure or lid for converting a container into a board-holding sawhorse.